ABSTRACT
Mali is a 1.24 million km2 landlocked state in West Africa with a relatively small population and one of the lowest GDPs per capita in the world. The southern part of the country includes most of the headwaters of the Niger River, but the north is an arid desert and sand sea. Formerly French Sudan, Mali is an Islamic state which obtained independence from France on 20 June 1960 as the Mali Federation. One month later, the Union Soudanaise Rassemblement Dmocratique Africain (USRDA) oriented the government towards socialism. At the same time, a pan-African policy with close ties to the Soviet Union, China and Cuba was launched. Western hostility towards this approach compounded the many political, social and economic problems and, in February 1967, agreement was reached with France for re-entry into the French zone. However, following a coup on 19 November 1968, the new military regime under Moussa Traore opted for liberalisation and non-alignment.
